The Tin Mine Page #3

Stop!!

Don't get in my way if you're not ready for trouble!

He made you foreman and you repay him like this?!

Yeah, he hired me! And that's between me and him!

Maybe we should all talk this over together.

Mister John?

Look, we're not taking all the tin for just us three.

We'll split it up between all of us.

There's plenty to go around.

Joi, Jerm, Hab, Hued, Kong...

... a little bit for each of us.

How are they supposed to feed their children?

You think ten baht a day is enough?

We're only taking a few baht in tin.

What's the big deal?

When the mine shuts down, who'll care about us?

But the Boss also pays the taxes for us for mining this land.

How could you steal them from him?

And why couldn't we?

Because it's illegal!

Illegal?

You're mixing up our laws with that foreigner's.

Working men go by the laws of life!

Move it!

Boss...

I'm here to tell you I'm quitting.

I'm going back to Bangkok to drive a taxi.

Really?

Working honestly for you

is making me worry that I'm betraying my country.

Tell you what, I'm going to give you a raise.

I'm sorry...

that I'm using this way

to consider giving you a raise.

Archin.

Your school must have taught you pretty well.

Most of the guys...

only care about the size of their cut.

Here.

Hungry? Don't be afraid to eat.

Fear? Don't be afraid, not even death.

Poor? Don't be afraid to borrow.

Once you're dead, you'll be debt-free!

Universities teach you about a love for country...

but the Tin Mine teaches you about a love for life.

From that day on, I was proud to be part of the Tin Mine.

We'd all come from different regions and schools.

I do every single damn thing!

We'd all heard different stories as kids.

The things that lead each of us to this Tin Mine were all different

too.

If I were a soldier, I'd wear a lieutenant's cap...

And we live here together more like a family,

than a bunch of workers.

Smelly ass, drink yourself silly.

We might disguise how closely related we are some times...

but when we really need it,

one of us is always there to lend a hand.

SOPHOMORE:

I progressed so quickly during my first year at the Tin Mine

that some of them envied my rapid promotion.

But they didn't know that

the quiet times there had quickly hollowed my hopeless heart.

Young guys like you shouldn't work in a place like this.

Nowhere to go for the New Year's holiday?

The sun is too bright today.

When the sun's this bright,

there's sure to be a storm by noon.

Want to bet on it?

Sure.

I'll bet you two bottles of whiskey.

No, there wasn't any cheering to celebrate the New Year here...

and I wouldn't be lying on the ground star-gazing

like I'd done in years past.

Well, looks like you lose.

Look at it coming down.

Hey, you...

Is New Year's day fun in Bangkok?

Regardless of what day it was at the Tin Mine,

we were more concerned with ourselves than nature.

We didn't have time to watch the sun rises or sets.

We only worried about getting to work each day.

Look's like you've had enough

if you're still planning on going to work tomorrow.

Happy New Year!

For us, the moon itself was meaningless.

It was only the waning moon

at the end of each calendar month that we cared about.

We didn't waste time looking at the moon in the night sky.

We looked for it in the bottom of a glass.

Days, months, years... the life of the Tin Mine

became more a part of my body each day.

No mail for you today.

The love letters from Bangkok grew fewer and fewer.

Uncle Dang, why this soup is so cold?

Just eat it! Your stomach will warm it up.

Cold and flavorless...

I sleep in a lonely hut at night

with the sound of the dredger as my only lullaby.

I work on ground that's sprinkled with dust from

the tin we've mined from below.

And the rain that falls down on my head

is mixed with the ashes of that tin as well.

At last, I felt ready to face any challenge

the mine could hand me.

And that day the rain had dropped a new friend down on my head as we

II.

This is Kai.

A teenager with nothing but his brawn to call his own.

A guy who doesn't even know the meaning of sadness.

Hey, that umbrella's for the camera not for you!

Hey! I just set the mark with that!

He's got a smile as big as a pond.

Hey, Kai!

Your Dad teaches you that?

As a surveyor, every square meter of this forest was my concern.

We're here to map the terrain, not for a weekend camping trip.

Kai!

Ok, you go back down there and find the boundary mark.

Again?

Please.

I'm tired.

This is the last one.

I'm tired.

Please!

So we couldn't pick any scenic spots in the woods.

I'm tried.

Haven't taken a break.

Only just one meal.

The train horn is blown, I'm going home.

Hey, finish gathering up the gear before you go!

Everyday, the locals can see how democratically we work together.

Kai carries the gear into the woods...

... and I carry it back out.

Kai!

Give me hand here.

Quitting time, boss.

Kai, do you know what time it is?

I ran my fastest.

Working with Kai has its challenges,

but it's got its delights as well.

Here, try some of this grain with coconut.

Go on, it'll spoil soon.

Come on, try it

Good, huh?

Kai?!

Archin! Look out below!

Kai, you trying to kill me?!

Kai was my assistant by day

and my massage therapist at night.

I always thought of him as a bit like my son...

... even if he seemed like my father sometimes.

More than anything, we were like brothers together in the mine.

Kai.

Yes?

Pull the marker up!

Based on yesterday's measurements,

old Kleum's moved his marker 20 feet further in.

Really? He's trying to cheat us.

Hey you!

Get away from there!

Don't mess with my border markers.

Boss! / Get lost!

Get over here.

Want a taste of my stick?

You're the one who's moved the markers into our company's area.

I don't care about your company.

Fine, I'll move yours back then.

Old guy like you will be dead soon, better save your breath.

Don't you curse at me, sonny!

Didn't curse at you, put a curse on you!

I'll slice you in two pieces!

Catch me if you can!

I'll show you what a curse is!

Catch me!

Kai!

Pull it up!

You pull that up and I'll crack your skull!

You hit him and I'll shoot you!

Boss, I'm scared.

Ok, I'll do it myself.

You're dead!

My sacred Buddha amulet has protected me!

Not even bullets can harm me now!

His holy power is watching over me.

He's protected my life.

He's protected my life. Blessed guardian.

Let me see that. / Bullets cannot harm me.

I've never seen an amulet that can stop bullets.

This is an old and sacred relic.

Now the amulet is with me. Kai, go move that marker!

You tricksters, give me my amulet back.

I'll give it back once that marker's moved.

I'll kill you first.

You still bold enough, even without your protective charm?

Ok then, give it a try!

I'll cut his head clean off!

Those who wear sacred images should know

that cheating is a sin.

Sacred amulets won't protect sinful people.

If I'm so sinful, why isn't there a bullet inside me right now?

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